At present, two different technical concepts, namely cassette stores and roll stores, are used for storing banknotes in automatic teller machines. In cassette stores, the storage of bank notes takes place in bundle form, each cassette storing one type of note. In the case of a roll store, the storage generally takes place between rolled-up plastic or metal tapes. Here, too, one type of note is stored per roll store, if the roll store is used as a main store. It is also possible for bank notes of a mixed bundle of notes to be stored, if the roll store is used only as an intermediate store, specifically as a so called intermediate cashbox for input banknotes.
When using the two storage technologies in automatic teller machines, in particular in so called automatic recycling machines for a closed circulation of money, one storage medium (cassette or roll) must be present for each type of note to be expected. However, storage media take up a great deal of space and are expensive, so that for the most part a restriction to the most common types of note is carried out.
If notes are accepted or if such are to be output for which there is no storage medium (1000 DM notes, foreign currencies or the like), these are best collected together in automatic recycling machines, but no longer output. In addition, the common factor in the two storage media is that when they are used as a mass store in automatic recycling machines, an intermediate cash box, mentioned above, is always required, since in the event of a paying-in operation being aborted by the customer, it is otherwise not possible to ensure that the already stored banknotes can be output again as they were originally. However, this measure is absolutely necessary, for example as a protection against the laundering of money.
In EP-A-0 735 513, a roll storage arrangement of the type mentioned at the beginning is specified, with which banknotes which have been paid in, even of different currencies or sorts of notes, can be stored in such a way that they can also be output again in a controlled manner at a later time. Two storage coils are provided, between which a storage tape can be wound to and fro as desired. The storage tape is divided into sectors of fixed length, which are identified by a code and hence can be found again at any time. Provided for this purpose is an electronic memory, in which the relationship between the banknotes and the sector codes is stored.
For the purpose of storage in the winding of a storage coil, a banknote is inserted between the storage tape and a second tape. The two tapes, with the banknote lying between them, are then wound up onto a storage coil. In the case of storing a banknote, the second tape is unwound from a separate supply coil, and wound up onto it again in the case of banknotes being removed from the store. The known device is of symmetrical construction, so that each storage coil is assigned a supply coil and a second tape. Three tapes and four coils are therefore necessary. The space requirement and the outlay on drive technology for four coils with a synchronous circumferential speed but to be driven in opposite directions is large. The utilization of the storage volume on the storage coil is also unfavorable, since for each currency note layer, two tape layers are wound up on it. The degree of utilization is reduced still further by the fact that the sector length has to be adapted to the length of the largest banknote occurring.
Therefore, there is a need for a roll storage arrangement of the type mentioned above which ensures a high degree of utilization of the space in the store, with a low outlay in constructional terms on the storage drive.